Don't just stand there, roll your sleeves up and interfere

A friend of mine, who shall remain nameless, told me about an experience he had recently on the subway that not only shocked me for what happened, but also for what it says about modern society.

After a day of walking in Olympic Forest Park, my friend - a Westerner who lives in Beijing - arrived at his stop at about 6 pm. With it being the Spring Festival holiday, a time when public transport is usually quiet, he was surprised to see a large crowd of people blocking his exit.

It took him a few seconds to realize it was an audience, staring silently back into the stationary train at a commotion inside. There were raised voices, surges of movement, rumbles of footsteps and muffled screams.